Raising Readers
One of my vivid memories as a young child was sitting in the bookstore (Exclusive Books, in South Africa) reading books. Mum would go shopping, dad would head to the bookstore and we got to choose who we wanted to go with. More times than not, we would end up at the bookstore. For hours. After looking around a bit, the only thing to do was to choose a book to read, to pass the time. We spent many a Saturday morning on the floor of a bookstore in various shopping malls.
To me there is nothing more exciting than climbing inside a story in your head. Having the freedom to create how the characters look and sound. Able to look at black and white words on paper but to envision whole worlds and the lives in them. No prizes for guessing I'm a HUGE fan of reading!!
This passion is embedded in our family's way of life and purposefully so. In what other way can we give children an experience outside of time and space and their reality? What a precious gift.
I also believe you cannot force kids to read. It is much more successful, in my experience to create a culture of reading.
I thought today, I would share a few of the ways I have (fairly successfully) created a culture of reading in our home and how it affects our family.
1. BUY THE KIDS BOOKS!!!
Another memory I will cherish forever is my dear granny who wisely bought us grandkids a subscription to Disney Wonderful World Of Reading. Every month we got a package. Every month we would get 3 Disney books! Soon our bookshelf was FULL of these books and we loved to read them. When we moved to New Zealand, we sadly had to give away all our childhood books. Being sentimental, when I had kids I hit the op-shops looking for the same books I had when I was little. This began what became a weekly trip to the op-shop in search of books I loved when I was little. And the obsession grew!
If your house is not full of books, kids will not read. Simple. My life-hack for creating a reading culture is visit the wonderful world of op-shops! We are lucky to have about 1 within a 10 minute radius of our home. I visit at least one, EVERY week. Yes I may come home with something I did NOT need from other areas of the second-hand shop but mostly I make a bee-line for the book shelves and grab a few, good quality books for the kids. They range from 50c - $2 and for a couple of dollars a week , I've been able to create a weekly experience that brings excitement at finding out what books I've picked for each child.
Buying second-hand books are good for a number of reasons. Firstly, they cost next to nothing so
there is no stressing over whether it gets lost or broken. Secondly, you very quickly are able to build up a whole library of books that kids will come back to, to read.
2. Make the Library a frequent event
The library and the de Wit family have a love-hate relationship. I'm afraid to admit it that this relationship has been strained more than I'd like to say by lost books and fines that end up costing more than is reasonable. I've had to reign our keen kids in and make a rule they are only allowed 5 books out at a time and we now have a library book box where all books are put back into after use.
The library is only usually a 15 minute experience for us. We go in, each pick a few books and by that stage, Noah has climbed the highest structure he can find, Jed has pushed buttons on the staff computers and changed the languages on the booking-out stations to Chinese... They will at least choose one book, the rest I choose. Abigail on the other hand, has to be dragged kicking and screaming from her book selection process as she tries to smuggle an extra 5 books through the check out.
Afternoons after the library are spent on the couch, curled up with one child on my lap and the other two on either side, working out way through the books we chose. Yes, Jed will insist on counting everything on each page and yes, Noah has something to say about each page too, so most books take double the time to read, BUT they love it! Winning!
3. Car time
For us, we started parenting with Abby who hated the car. From little, when most kids were lulled to sleep by the mechanical humming of the car engine, Abby would scream...and scream. We started feeding her to distract her at around 1 years old. When she started eating a whole packet of veggie chips within the first 5 minutes of the car trip, I had to find another option! So I would bring books in the car. Little Abigail would flick through pages and sit happily for the car trip that would usually have been a misery to sit through.
This habit has continued. Even now, anytime we are going out that requires a car ride longer than 10 minutes, they all go and choose 3 books to bring in the car. When you're sitting restrained in a seat belt there really isn't much to do so reading, whether they feel like it or not, becomes a pretty good option.
Yes, on the downside, my car is FULL of books and you can hardly ever see the floor. But, on the plus side, my kids are reading.
4. Catch their interest!
Raising kids who love to read starts with a little detective work. What do the kids love? What makes them tick? What topic are they talking about, drawing and role-playing?
For Jed, our littlest(2 and a whole half), he is sport mad. It isn't hard to go around the library and pick out 2 - 3 books that have at least one ball in them. Soccer, rugby, skateboarding books, anything with sport and action he will sit and flick through. And take to Kindy. And take to bed at night. Yes, books he loves go everywhere with him.
For Noah, Mr. 5, he needs a bit more stimulation to sit still. I worked out early that he loved looking for things in the books when I asked where something was. So we raided the puzzle section and he would sit with me and search for the things in the book. This progressed to puzzle books which are his other favourites. A love for other books has followed, but Noah definitely needed books that required activity.
Abigail, my bookworm has grown to love books. She is the type of child who will sneak books into bed and you'll find her reading 2 hours after lights out... not so cute at the time...or the next morning when she is exhausted. Abigail loves stories about people. As girls do, they're relational! Abby loves stories about friendship and girls who do great things.
5. Turn time out into book time!
Books are a great way to get kids to calm down, in fact they have the most wonderful calming effect.
If things are getting a bit out of control at home, I'll stop the kids, tell them to grab a book and sit on the couch. If someone is playing up and emotionally losing control to the point that they have to be removed from the situation, if we are home, we will send them to their rooms to read. Reading should NOT be a punishment, by any means. But giving it as an option for something to do when there really is nothing else to do, will make kids feel like they are 'choosing' to read. And the effects are really great!
It is a wonderful thing to have kids who read. But it won't happen without a little detective work and intentional engineering. As parents we are constantly surrounded by choices. Say yes to TV? Or tell them to go get a book. Give them time out in the corner or give them a book to help them refocus and gather themselves. Tell them to go to sleep when they can't sleep or giving them a book to help that process. All these little things (not all of which will work for everyone, understand that) can help in creating a culture of reading in your home.
So what are you waiting for? Boil the kettle, make some tea and Milos, cuddle up on the couch under a blanket with your kids and do some reading!!! :)
“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.”
― Dr. Seuss, I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!
To me there is nothing more exciting than climbing inside a story in your head. Having the freedom to create how the characters look and sound. Able to look at black and white words on paper but to envision whole worlds and the lives in them. No prizes for guessing I'm a HUGE fan of reading!!
This passion is embedded in our family's way of life and purposefully so. In what other way can we give children an experience outside of time and space and their reality? What a precious gift.
I also believe you cannot force kids to read. It is much more successful, in my experience to create a culture of reading.
I thought today, I would share a few of the ways I have (fairly successfully) created a culture of reading in our home and how it affects our family.
1. BUY THE KIDS BOOKS!!!
Another memory I will cherish forever is my dear granny who wisely bought us grandkids a subscription to Disney Wonderful World Of Reading. Every month we got a package. Every month we would get 3 Disney books! Soon our bookshelf was FULL of these books and we loved to read them. When we moved to New Zealand, we sadly had to give away all our childhood books. Being sentimental, when I had kids I hit the op-shops looking for the same books I had when I was little. This began what became a weekly trip to the op-shop in search of books I loved when I was little. And the obsession grew!
If your house is not full of books, kids will not read. Simple. My life-hack for creating a reading culture is visit the wonderful world of op-shops! We are lucky to have about 1 within a 10 minute radius of our home. I visit at least one, EVERY week. Yes I may come home with something I did NOT need from other areas of the second-hand shop but mostly I make a bee-line for the book shelves and grab a few, good quality books for the kids. They range from 50c - $2 and for a couple of dollars a week , I've been able to create a weekly experience that brings excitement at finding out what books I've picked for each child.there is no stressing over whether it gets lost or broken. Secondly, you very quickly are able to build up a whole library of books that kids will come back to, to read.
2. Make the Library a frequent event
The library and the de Wit family have a love-hate relationship. I'm afraid to admit it that this relationship has been strained more than I'd like to say by lost books and fines that end up costing more than is reasonable. I've had to reign our keen kids in and make a rule they are only allowed 5 books out at a time and we now have a library book box where all books are put back into after use.
The library is only usually a 15 minute experience for us. We go in, each pick a few books and by that stage, Noah has climbed the highest structure he can find, Jed has pushed buttons on the staff computers and changed the languages on the booking-out stations to Chinese... They will at least choose one book, the rest I choose. Abigail on the other hand, has to be dragged kicking and screaming from her book selection process as she tries to smuggle an extra 5 books through the check out.
Afternoons after the library are spent on the couch, curled up with one child on my lap and the other two on either side, working out way through the books we chose. Yes, Jed will insist on counting everything on each page and yes, Noah has something to say about each page too, so most books take double the time to read, BUT they love it! Winning!
3. Car time
For us, we started parenting with Abby who hated the car. From little, when most kids were lulled to sleep by the mechanical humming of the car engine, Abby would scream...and scream. We started feeding her to distract her at around 1 years old. When she started eating a whole packet of veggie chips within the first 5 minutes of the car trip, I had to find another option! So I would bring books in the car. Little Abigail would flick through pages and sit happily for the car trip that would usually have been a misery to sit through.
This habit has continued. Even now, anytime we are going out that requires a car ride longer than 10 minutes, they all go and choose 3 books to bring in the car. When you're sitting restrained in a seat belt there really isn't much to do so reading, whether they feel like it or not, becomes a pretty good option.
Yes, on the downside, my car is FULL of books and you can hardly ever see the floor. But, on the plus side, my kids are reading.
4. Catch their interest!
Raising kids who love to read starts with a little detective work. What do the kids love? What makes them tick? What topic are they talking about, drawing and role-playing?
For Jed, our littlest(2 and a whole half), he is sport mad. It isn't hard to go around the library and pick out 2 - 3 books that have at least one ball in them. Soccer, rugby, skateboarding books, anything with sport and action he will sit and flick through. And take to Kindy. And take to bed at night. Yes, books he loves go everywhere with him.
Abigail, my bookworm has grown to love books. She is the type of child who will sneak books into bed and you'll find her reading 2 hours after lights out... not so cute at the time...or the next morning when she is exhausted. Abigail loves stories about people. As girls do, they're relational! Abby loves stories about friendship and girls who do great things.
5. Turn time out into book time!
Books are a great way to get kids to calm down, in fact they have the most wonderful calming effect.
If things are getting a bit out of control at home, I'll stop the kids, tell them to grab a book and sit on the couch. If someone is playing up and emotionally losing control to the point that they have to be removed from the situation, if we are home, we will send them to their rooms to read. Reading should NOT be a punishment, by any means. But giving it as an option for something to do when there really is nothing else to do, will make kids feel like they are 'choosing' to read. And the effects are really great!
It is a wonderful thing to have kids who read. But it won't happen without a little detective work and intentional engineering. As parents we are constantly surrounded by choices. Say yes to TV? Or tell them to go get a book. Give them time out in the corner or give them a book to help them refocus and gather themselves. Tell them to go to sleep when they can't sleep or giving them a book to help that process. All these little things (not all of which will work for everyone, understand that) can help in creating a culture of reading in your home.So what are you waiting for? Boil the kettle, make some tea and Milos, cuddle up on the couch under a blanket with your kids and do some reading!!! :)
“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.”
― Dr. Seuss, I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!
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